Twitter blocks accounts that tracked deleted tweets of politicians

Twitter has blocked access to more than 30 accounts that tracked and archived the deleted tweets of politicians and diplomats around the world.

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Twitter defended the move against the Politwoops and Diplotwoops accounts by saying deleting tweets was "an expression of the user's voice".

Run by Netherlands-based digital transparency organisation Open State Foundation, the accounts tracked the Twitter accounts of political figures and organisations in 30 countries. When a tweet was deleted an automated account would repost it to Twitter and archive it online.

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Countries where Twitter has blocked the accounts include Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, India, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain and Turkey and the United Kingdom. The account that tracked deleted tweets from members of the European Parliament has also had its access to Twitter revoked. "What elected politicians publicly say is a matter of public record. Even when tweets are deleted, it's part of parliamentary history," said Arjan El Fassed, director of Open State Foundation. "This is not about typos but it is a unique insight on how messages from elected politicians can change without notice."

All of the accounts have had their access to Twitter's API suspended, preventing them from posting directly to the social network. Deleted tweets will continue to be archived online. The move wasn't without precedent -- Twitter had blocked access to the US version of Politwoops in May.

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In a statement issued to the Open State Foundation, Twitter said its decision was based on "close consideration of a number of factors". "Imagine how nerve-racking -- terrifying, even -- tweeting would be if it was immutable and irrevocable? No one user is more deserving of that ability than another," the statement from Twitter read.

After it blocked the US version of Politwoops in May, Twitter explained it was "honouring the expectation of user privacy for all accounts", regardless of whether they were a member of the public or a politician.